This site has been posted by a patient
to provide information about chronic candida,
a group of symptoms which appears to be caused by the
overgrowth of the yeast Candida albicans in the
gastrointestinal tract.
The patient database lists symptoms and treatment results
submitted by visitors to this site.

Patient Database:

Submit
your profile -- if you have tried anti-candida remedies
to treat symptoms, please share your experiences(successful or not)
with others. If you already have a profile, you can
update it.

Patients Table
-- view the age, sex, and comments of those who have entered
information into the database

Symptoms Table
-- view a list of all the symptoms visitors have reported

Antibiotics
Table -- view a list of all the antibiotics visitors report having,
taken prior to becoming ill

Medications
Table -- view a list of prescription and non-prescription
medications visitors report having taken to treat their symptoms,
and their results

Practitioners
Table -- view a list of practitioners(physicians and others)
visitors have reported seeing for their symptoms

Diet Table
-- view a list of foods visitors have eliminated tried eliminating
from their diet, and their results

What is Candida?

Candida is a yeast-like fungus that causes superficial
infections
of the mucus membranes, such as vaginal yeast infections. It can
cause more serious, systemic infection when a person's
immune system is compromised by diseases such as cancer and AIDS.
Candida infections are more common following use of
broad-spectrum antibiotics, as these can kill off
the normal microflora (bacteria) in the gastrointestinal
tract, which (when present) confer a natural colonization
resistance to overgrowth by candida.
Candida albicans is the candida species most
likely to cause candida infection.

Candida a normal resident of the human gastrointestinal(GI)
tract, present in small numbers with no negative
health effects.

What is "chronic candida"?

Chronic candida was first written about
in 1983 by C. Orian Truss in his book "The Missing Diagnosis".
It is a cluster of symptoms consisting mainly
of fatigue, mental/emotional symptoms(such as irritability,
depression, and difficulty concentrating), and
gastrointestinal symptoms(such as bloating,
GERD, and constipation). There is no medical test for
the condition, and diagnostic criteria have not been
scientifically established. It is not generally recognized
by practicing physicians, and so it is not usually diagnosed.
However, the minority of doctors who do recognize the syndrome
as a medical condition will often diagnose it based upon
a positive response to anti-candida treatment.
Most people learn about chronic candida from books
published in the lay press, which are based mainly on case
reports. Since the condition hasn't been the subject of
extensive medical research, most physicians will not diagnose it.

What are probiotics?

A healthy human gastrointestinal(GI) tract contains
trillions of bacteria and other microbes. There are several
hundred species, and their total numbers are estimated to be
10 times the number of cells that make up the human body.
Because man has evolved with these microbes
presenct in the GI tract, they are a necessary part of
healthy digestion and immune function.

"Probiotics" are live bacteria administered to animals or
humans to supplement the microbes in the GI tract,
and in doing so, improve health. Medical benefits from specific
strains of bacteria have only recently been scientifically
proven(1), although the concept has been around
for a long time(2).
There are a dozen or two products on
the market worldwide with bacteria that have
proven clinical benefits.

Dozens of supplement products are marketed as probiotics,
frequently capsules of freeze-dried Lactobacillus species.
Research has shown that there are benefits to
a healthy population of Lactobacilli in the GI tract,
but the use of the term "probiotic" does not refer
specificly to Lactobacilli or any other bacteria.
It can refer to any microorganism meant to be
used to promote health. It does not mean that a
health benefits has necessarily been proven
for that organism, either.

What is the relationship between candida and probiotics?

Probiotics are a popular treatment for chronic candida,
probably because that condition is thought to occur
(at least in some cases) after the protective GI microflora
has been reduced by antibiotics. There are
prescription antifungals for candida infection, but
some infections do not respond completely.
A recent animal study with mice showed that a
commercially available strain of probiotic
bacteria(Lactobacillus GG)
improved the response to candida
infection(3).
Because candida infection is very common, and
probiotics may be effective at preventing candida overgrowth
as well as reversing it, candida is a good
target pathogen for future probiotic research.

Disclaimer:
Information on this site, including comments on medical treatments, is
not intended as medical advice to visitors. It should be
evaluated critically and should not take the place of
medical advice from a licensed healthcare professional.